An Economic History Challenge to the History of Philanthropy
New Works in the Field / Philanthropy and Historical Research

An Economic History Challenge to the History of Philanthropy

Editors’ Note: David Hammack reviews Organizations, Civil Society, and the Roots of Development, edited by Naomi R. Lamoreaux and John Joseph Wallis. For more than thirty years a growing literature has debated the origins of the market economy and the relation between the market and economic growth. Motivating this debate is the understanding, widely shared … Continue reading

Money Well Spent in Historical Context
Money Well Spent (2nd Edition) Forum

Money Well Spent in Historical Context

Editors’ Note: Continuing HistPhil’s forum on the second edition of Paul Brest and Hal Harvey’s Money Well Spent (2018), David C. Hammack places the book’s first and second publications, respectively in 2008 and 2018, within a sweeping 300-year history of philanthropic manuals in the United States.  With the 2008 publication of Money Well Spent: A Strategic Plan for … Continue reading

Another Interpretation of “The Bible Cause”: David Hammack Reviews Fea’s History of the American Bible Society
New Works in the Field

Another Interpretation of “The Bible Cause”: David Hammack Reviews Fea’s History of the American Bible Society

Editors’ Note: David Hammack reviews John Fea’s The Bible Cause: A History of the American Bible Society (Oxford, 2016). Neil Young reviewed the book last week. As a sponsored celebration of two hundred years of the American Bible Society intended for a friendly audience, The Bible Cause is remarkably comprehensive and thoughtful. Its acknowledgement of debates and … Continue reading

Conferences / Philanthropy and Historical Research

Reflections on History and ARNOVA

Editors’ Note: On Friday, at its annual conference in Chicago, ARNOVA (Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action) held a mini-plenary: “History, Nonprofits Organizations and Voluntary Associations: Plenary in Honor of Peter Dobkin Hall” at which scholars in the field debated the role that history should play within the research organization. They also discussed … Continue reading

In remembrance

Peter Dobkin Hall (1946-2015)

Editors’ Note: On April 30, American philanthropic and nonprofit history lost one of its leading scholars. Peter Dobkin Hall’s work — ambitious, provocative, and meticulously researched — helped define the field, sparking debate and seeding lines of research inquiry, as did his leadership in organizations and institutions such as ARNOVA, Yale’s Program on Nonprofit Organizations, and … Continue reading

Philanthropy and Historical Research

Part II: Debating the Basis of American Civil Society, Waves of Debate about Religion and Virtue

Editors’ Note: Yesterday, we published Part One of David C. Hammack‘s two-part contribution. Below is Part Two: “Debating the Basis of American Civil Society, Waves of Debate about Religion and Virtue.” Earlier posts under this general dialogue on the field of philanthropic history include: Stan Katz’s “The Clinton Foundation in Historical Perspective”; Maribel Morey’s “Increasing the Visibility of Philanthropy among … Continue reading

Philanthropy and Historical Research

Waves of Historical Interest in Philanthropy and Civil Society

Editors’ Note: We continue with our discussion of the field with this two-part contribution by historian David C. Hammack. Today, we include Part One: “Waves of Historical Interest in Philanthropy and Civil Society.” Tomorrow, we will post Part Two: “Debating the Basis of American Civil Society, Waves of Debate about Religion and Virtue.” Earlier posts under this … Continue reading